Harry Potter and the true Power He Knows Not: Part 1
by Christopher Perkins
Summary: What if Hogwarts could tell if a student was abused. What if Harry met a brown bushy-haired girl rather then the family of redheads. How would the story change? H/HR with certain Weasley and Dumbledore bashing. PROJECT UNDER REVISION AND WILL BE REPOSTED UNDER A DIFFERENT NAME WHEN TIME IS AVAILABLE.
1. Chapter 1

_**Welcome to my first Harry Potter FanFic, this will follow two challenges of sorts, neither of which I can remember where I found them, If anyone can tell me who wrote them, let me know so I can accredit them properly.**_

 _ **the first is "What if Harry met Hermione instead of the Weasleys at Platform 9 3/4"**_

 _ **the second is the following; "What if the Founders had their own ideas on how to protect students? What if the Sorting Hat was the 'spokesperson' for Hogwarts herself? what if all students were scanned by the hat for any problems as they came in and were sorted? This might wake some people up, or cause problems for plans people may or may not have. Conditions: 1) At Harry's Sorting, the Sorting Hat notices the abuse Harry had gone through at home. Abuse can be Canon or Fanon. It immediately calls a halt to the Sorting, calling for Madam Pomfrey and the head of the DMLE and will not sort anyone else until they arrive. 2) there is no way to get around contacting these people. 3) Only when Harry is in the hands of the Law Enforcement and Healers, will the sorting continue. 4) Dumbledore can be a blind good guy or Dark Lord or anything in between. 5) Harry must get free of the Dursleys for this, they cannot escape punishment. 6) Ships can be any. 7) Harry should get some help from Hogwarts/Sorting Hat. 8) Horcruxes okay, but NO HARRY HORCRUX. Mother's protection would not allow this. 9) Please no DH. 10) No evil!Harry, Grey!Harry or Light!Harry preferable, so long as good sided."**_

 _ **That said; this will be a Harry/Hermione Fic and this will cover all seven years and then a chapter or two of Post-Hogwarts**_

* * *

It was nine o'clock, September 1, 1991, and Harry Potter was worried; his "uncle" Vernon dropped him off very early and he still could not find Platform 9 ¾. He was just about to give up when Hedwig barked at him and pointed at one of the columns, "You think it's that one?" a nod was her reply, "Alright, but if not, we'll have to find something else to try." getting a good lick of speed, Harry was shocked when he went through that barrier and found himself on Platform 9 ¾.

The steam billowing from the red engine was awe inspiring, so much so, that Harry forgot the most basic rule of doors, never stand in them for long.

 _ **Crash!**_

Harry found himself kissing pavement with the feeling of being crushed. "Oh I'm so sorry, I didn't realise there was someone in the way." the young brown haired girl said.

She helped him sit up and dust off, "Hermione Granger," she said whilst sticking out her hand.

"Harry Potter," he replied, taking her hand.

She helped him up and then recognition flashed across her face, "The Boy-Who-Lived?" she whispered.

"Apparently," he scoffed, "I was only told I was a wizard last month by the gamekeeper of Hogwarts."

Shock crossed Hermione's face, "Would you like to sit with me, perhaps I can help you adjust, after all, I've had nearly a year to do it."

Harry smiled and agreed, hoping to make at least one friend whilst at Hogwarts. "First year as well?" he asked.

Hermione nodded, "Yes, and I'm looking forward to learning real magic, have you read your books yet?"

Harry nodded, "Just Potions and Herbology though, my _Aunt_ and _Uncle_ didn't want anything _Freakish_ happening," he muttered.

She seemed dejected at this, "Well, I'll have to bring you up to snuff then."

The next two hours consisted of a crash course of sorts in Charms, Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, History of Magic and Astronomy. Hermione was a natural teacher and, much to Harry's surprise, he was a quick study at many subjects with only History and Astronomy troubling him. At Eleven o'clock precisely, the train began moving, just as a family of redheads practically lept on the train. Harry and Hermione looked at each other with a bemused expression on their faces, "one would think, that doing this probably five or more times, judging the number of children that woman had, they would not be cutting it so fine." Hermione sighed.

Harry chuckled, "I bet since this only really happens once a year, they might forget what time to leave their house."

Before Hermione could answer, they heard a crash come from the corridor. Popping their heads out, they noticed a dark-haired Wizard on the floor with a trunk and a case surrounding him. "Blast those Weasley twins, I swear I'll think of something," he muttered.

Rushing to his side, Hermione helped him up whilst Harry arraigned his luggage, "Bless your souls thank you both, mind if I ride with you both, it's tradition for some of the older students to intermingle with the younger ones," he asked. When they nodded, he shook their hands, "Thank you kindly, I'm Alba McGonagall, yes I'm related to the Depute Headmistress, and yes, I'm not in her house."

Hermione was amazed, "How are you related? What house are you in?"

Alba chuckled, "She be me Grandmum and I'm in Slytherin, third year too. My, you're inquisitive, I'm thinking Ravenclaw or Slytherin, I'm usually right but you could be in any house, as for you Mr Potter, I've got no bloody clue, you've got traits of all four houses yet nothing tieing you to one in particular."

Harry was shocked, "How did you know?"

Alba chuckled "Two things, I can see your bangs are hiding your scar, you might want to do a better job than that," he said, and Harry moved more hair to cover it. "And secondly, I came with Grandmum every now and then to the Potter house and met you all those years ago."

They sat in relative silence after that, with the only noise being the violin Alba brought, a great many people entered their compartment to find Harry Potter, but Alba would send them on their way before they got a look at him, especially the youngest of the Weasley brood as he was loudly proclaiming that he would be his "Best Mate" much to Harry and Hermione's amusement.

In no time at all, they were entering Hogsmeade 'Station' Harry could barely call it a halt. "Firs' years ove' here, Firs' years follow me!" Hagrid called.

Alba waved them off "See you at the castle you two!"

They walked through the village of Hogsmeade and reached the boats and though Hagrid called four to a boat, Harry and Hermione were on their own, the others seeming to give them a wide berth. Soon, Hogwarts came into view the castle was a wondrous sight and soon they encountered Professor McGonagall. "Welcome to Hogwarts, The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room.

The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours."

With that, they were waiting outside the Great Hall and soon students were muttering about the Sorting with crazy rumours flying. Harry and Hermione shared a smile, Alba mentioned that the Sorting was nothing more than wearing a hat whilst it determines, based on your traits, which house to place you in.

Entering the Great Hall hand in hand, they sat on the benches when the Hat began to sing.

 **Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,**

 **But don't judge on what you see,**

 **I'll eat myself if you can find**

 **A smarter hat than me.**

 **You can keep your bowlers black,**

 **Your top hats sleek and tall,**

 **For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat**

 **And I can cap them all.**

 **There's nothing hidden in your head**

 **The Sorting Hat can't see,**

 **So try me on and I will tell you**

 **Where you ought to be.**

 **You might belong in Gryffindor,**

 **Where dwell the brave at heart,**

 **Their daring, nerve, and chivalry**

 **Set Gryffindors apart;**

 **You might belong in Hufflepuff,**

 **Where they are just and loyal,**

 **Those patient Hufflepuffs are true**

 **And unafraid of toil;**

 **Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,**

 **If you've a ready mind,**

 **Where those of wit and learning,**

 **Will always find their kind;**

 **Or perhaps in Slytherin**

 **You'll make your real friends,**

 **Those cunning folks use any means**

 **To achieve their ends.**

 **So put me on! Don't be afraid!**

 **And don't get in a flap!**

 **You're in safe hands (though I have none)**

 **For I'm a Thinking Cap!**

With the (Odd?) song out of the way, names were called "Abbott, Hannah" then, " **Hufflepuff** " and on and on it went until "Granger, Hermione" a moment passed before the hat called out " **On Hold!** " much to the shock of all. Hermione could do very little except walk back to her seat, but she did not seem upset about it. Malfoy was placed in Gryffindor, much to his consternation. Then at long last, "Potter, Harry" and the murmuring started, Harry was able to ignore them and sat upon the stool. " _Ah Mr Potter, the one Miss Granger wanted me to talk to, let's see what she's on about."_

" _Hermione wanted you to talk to me, why?" Harry thought._

 _The hat didn't reply for a moment, then, all of a sudden, "What the bloody hell happened to your childhood!"_

 _Harry scoffed, "What childhood?"_

" _Exactly, one moment please,"_ then the hat bellowed " **Headmaster Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Hermione Granger, Conference room one NOW!** "

Paled considerably, McGonagall asked, "And the Sorting?"

" **Is on hold!** " Snarled the hat.

Soon everyone named was in the conference room and the hat spoke again, " **Right Albus, contact Madam Amelia Bones of the DMLE, Minerva, get Poppy, quickly now!** "

Knowing that they would get no answers until it was done, the kids were left with the hat when Hermione spoke up, "How bad is it?"

The hat grimaced, " **Not good; Mr Potter, would you like me to explain or would you like to?** "

"Please do," Harry said, suddenly feeling very small and very scared.

Hermione, seeing how he was shrinking back into a shell, carefully took his hand, and said "It's alright Harry, I'm here for you," before pulling him into a gentle hug.

This was the scene that the adults walked into, the hat, taking charge, said, " **We'll leave them be for now, I've placed some of Harry's memories into the Pensieve, please look at it now.** "

The adults did as they were told and a quarter of an hour later, they emerged; Madam Bones and Professor McGonagall red with rage, Dumbledore white with fear, and Madam Pomfrey quite green. Minerva turned on the Headmaster, "Dè an t-ifrinn fiadhaich a bh 'ann an Alba a' smaoineachadh air Albus, dh 'innis mi dhut gur e an seòrsa bu mhiosa de mhugairean a bh' annta, ach an d 'èist thu, CHA BHI!"

"Minerva, you can rip Albus a new one later, I'll even join you, but right now, you're scaring Harry," Madam Bones said, attempting to placate her friend.

McGonagall paled considerably, "I'm so sorry Harry, I should have a better hold of my temper."

" **Then I shouldn't mention that these were some of the worst with one of the best?** " the hat casually said.

Minerva and Albus sank into chairs while Madam Pomfrey rushed out of the room when she returned, the hat asked her to check Harry, "There could be complications that we don't know about."

She ran her spells and her face tightened and she noticed everyone looking at her, "Let's put it this way, a muggle would have been dead long before this."

The room gave a collective gasp and Harry groaned, that was just what he needed, another reason to stand out. Hermione though noticed this and leant into his ear, "I don't think any less of you, and you'll always be 'just Harry' to me." At this, Harry clung to Hermione as if she would disappear, when he started shaking, she whispered, "It's alright, let it out Harry," while rubbing his back as soothingly as she could, thankfully, he listened to her and they held each other while the adults looked on.

Amelia and Poppy started making arrangements to correct this situation while Minerva stared down Albus, soon though, the hat said, " **We need to head back to the hall and continue the Sorting, do you feel like you can do that?** " at Harry's nod they began walking back. " _So Harry, where to put you? You've got traits of all four houses, what is your preference?_ "

" _Just put me with Hermione,_ " Harry thought, " _I need all the help I can get._ "

" _Right then,_ " The hat billowed, " **Hermione Granger and Harry Potter are in SLYTHERIN!** "

Much of the hall was in shock, never had there been a duel sorting, much less a Muggleborn in Slytherin much less a Potter. Making their way to the Slytherin House Table next to Alba, the Sorting continued, the only shock is that of the entire incoming First Years, Harry and Hermione were the only Slytherins. Soon the feast was over and they were let to the house common room where Professor Snape ran down the rules for his two new First Years. At a much closer range, Snape could see clearly what warranted concern from one of his older snakes. "Mr Potter, I can tell why you were called off during the Sorting," he began, noticing Harry's discomfort, "I have potions that can help you recover quickly and effectively by taking them once a day, I will speak with the School Matron about it, would you like that?" at Harry's nod he continued, "I don't know what your life was like exactly, but I know what it should have been, I may not of been best of friends with your Father, but your Mother and I were best of friends at your age, tomorrow I'll bring some of her things, would you like that?"

At that moment Harry broke down into tears, Hermione cradled his head, "I think Harry would like that sir," she replied.

He nodded and turned to see Alba with his violin, walking over to him Alba remarked, "It looks as though he could use it, sir."

Snape agreed "More than you know Mr McGonagall."

That evening the soft strings of violin music echoed around the House of Snakes, helping the young sleep and calming the older. Snape was in his office when he walked over to his Floo, "Depute's Office!" he cried when Minerva's head appeared he told her what had happened. "... I thought he was supposed to be safe, where the hell was he?"

Minerva shook her head, "Petunia Dursley's."

"That explains it," he muttered, "Tunie hates magic, she hated her sister, the stories she told of her summers, I think she downplayed it."

"Oh no, Severus, Amelia and I are going to 'speak' with Albus tomorrow after lunch, would you like to offer your perspective?" she asked.

A smile crossed his face, "I get the feeling you've already had the starting of a 'conversation' with him, I would love to join."

Minerva looked down, "I shouted at him in Gaelic. In front of Harry no less."

Severus looked surprised, "Well that's a first, you'll have to provide a Pensieve memory to your cubs to show just why no one with any sense dares argues with you."

With that, they both went off to bed, little knowing that Hogwarts would never be the same again...


	2. Chapter 2

Morning came to the Scottish countryside. Hermione was up early; thinking she was the only one up, she went down to the common room to read. Much to her surprise, Harry was already there lightly dozing. "He's been there for almost an hour, I've no clue why though," she heard whispered to her side. Turning to ask a question, she was even more surprised to see Alba standing behind her, "I've been sleeping off and on, helping the young ones stay asleep, thank goodness classes don't start for another two days." he muttered.

"I'll speak with him when he wakes, honestly, I didn't sleep much either, but I was too worried about Harry to sleep," she replied. Looking at Harry, she asked, "Were you the one that brought concerns to Professor Snape?"

Alba nodded, "He's much too thin to have been eating right, and he doesn't seem like the type of person who would do such a thing," he then thought for a moment, "How was the meeting? Did someone else notice?"

She looked down, "I'd rather not say without Harry knowing."

Alba nodded, "I understand, it's good to see that Harry has at least one good friend." then he smirked, "I wonder…"

Before Hermione could question Alba on what he said, he disappeared and Harry began to stir. Walking to his side, Hermione gently woke him up. "Hey Hermione," he said, eyes still shut.

Hermione was shocked, "How did you know it was me?"

Harry opened his eyes and smiled, "I recognise your shampoo scent, but I also felt that I would be awoken by you for some reason," standing and stretching, he asked, "What's on the agenda for today?" at Hermione's confused look, he said "Since we are the only Slytherin first years, we'll be the only ones with our schedule, therefore, I assumed that you would want to find our classes first so we're not late on the first day." They agreed and walked down to the Great Hall for breakfast then spent the day walking around the castle to find their classrooms.

* * *

While Harry and Hermione were eating Lunch, the Headmaster was fighting an oncoming migraine. Minerva, Amelia and Severus were in his office tearing him a new one over a mistake me made nearly ten years ago. It had been his hope that Harry would grow up in a loving environment and away from the Wizarding World and thus away from his fame. There was only so much battering his ego could take and so came to a decision that he hoped would please all, "Thank you for your perspectives, it is my opinion that I have wronged Mr Potter so greatly that I have no recourse but to resign from my position as Headmaster."

Silence accompanied his announcement, admittedly not the reaction he expected, he thought that they would at least express some emotion. Finally, Minerva broke the silence, "That might be for the best Albus, are you sure?"

Nodding, he replied, "I've spread myself thinly for years, if I can focus my efforts, I will be able to work more effectively and Hogwarts will do better. Minerva, I suspect that the Board of Governors will confirm you as my successor, will you need someone to take over Transfiguration?"

Minerva shook her head, "I think that spreading the duties between myself and the Depute will allow me to continue teaching."

With that, they parted ways, and by four in the evening, there was not a trace of Albus Dumbledore in Hogwarts. Once dinner came, and all of the students were in the hall, Professor McGonagall rose and addressed the students, "As I'm sure the more astute of you have noticed, Headmaster Dumbledore is not here, that is because he has resigned as Headmaster of Hogwarts," silence ruled the hall, prompting her onward, "As such, until confirmed by the Board of Governors, I will be taking over as Headmistress with Professor Flitwick as Depute," this brought on shouts with the most common theme being about the Transfiguration class, "I will not be stepping down from my teaching position as I enjoy doing it." cheers arose from them, one would have thought that a party of trolls were in Hogwarts as the noise could be heard from Hogsmeade.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, they both suspected that yesterday's events were at the centre of today's. In Hermione's mind, anything that punished the guilty party was good, but she really wanted to make those Dursleys pay, her mind racing to figure something out quickly. Harry, however, felt a great deal of relief at being able to put it behind him before the term started.

* * *

Soon though, there was little time to dwell on it as classes started in full force. Their first class was double Potions with the Gryffindors. And almost immediately after taking role started testing Harry's knowledge, "Mr Potter, What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

"The Draught of Living Death, sir," he replied.

Snape nodded, "Good, where would I find a bezoar?"

"Normally in the stomach of a goat, but as it is a common ingredient to antidotes, most apothecaries and Potion labs would have them."

"What's the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

Harry shook his head, "Nothing sir, they are the same plant which goes by the common name of aconite."

To say Severus was shocked would be putting it mildly, no one had ever answered his three start of term questions right, and, considering that they wouldn't use aconite until May at the earliest, it meant Harry had read the book back to front even though most students wouldn't touch their books until told. "Well done Mr Potter, take five points to Slytherin for reading the text so soon. I don't expect potion prodigies in your first years here, however, as long as you follow the instructions presented to you as well as my guidance, you will be able to produce acceptable potions without visiting Madam Pomfrey in the Infirmary."

After Severus put the instructions up, Harry soon proved that his knowledge was not over exaggerated. Hermione had paired up with him and they were the only group to produce an outstanding version of the cure for boils, and rather quickly as well. Amusingly for Harry and Hermione, the Weasley boy and Malfoy had paired up and, judging by the sounds emanating from their caldron, failing horribly. Suddenly, their caldron exploded; acting quickly, Harry shielded Hermione and heard a hissing as his robes heated up, thus causing him to throw them off, surprisingly though, neither Weasley nor Malfoy were covered in their failure, but Harry had little time to think about it as Professor Snape began yelling at the guilty party, "Weasley, Malfoy, what do you think you're playing at! Should I ask why you're caldron's shield was non-existent in the direction of Mr Potter and Miss Granger? Headmistress' office now! Class dismissed."

Looking to Hermione, Harry saw the fear in her eyes, his concern notching up several ticks when she clung to him and wouldn't let go, though if Harry was being completely honest with himself, he sure didn't mind the close proximity at all. "Hermione?" he asked. He was sure she whispered something but couldn't quite hear it. "Hey, it's alright, we're safe, we're safe…" repeating it, trying to reassure her of that but it took hours before she calmed enough to walk and as it was, they were almost late to Transfiguration. Professor McGonagall though was understanding and didn't raise the issue, though it would have been hard to do so as she was in her Animage form. The class was spent trying to turn matchsticks into needles, Harry believed that on any other day, Hermione would have accomplished the task quickly, but as the second and final hour ended, she couldn't even turn her matchstick silver.

And so it went for that week, Harry doing what he could, but with his life experiences, he just didn't know what to do when an idea came to him.

* * *

Early Saturday morning a couple wakes into their morning routine when a snowy owl delivers a letter to them. The woman opens it, hoping it's from her daughter reads it with vigour only for her face to fall. "Daniel!" she shouts, drawing her husband to her as she shoves the letter into his hands.

 _Dear Mr and Mrs Granger,_

 _This is not how I wished to introduce myself, but circumstances prevent my wishes. My name is Harry Potter and your daughter is my closest and first friend. The reason for my letter stems from Monday morning, we were in Potions class, it's akin to chemistry in the muggle world, when a classmate's potion exploded, I shielded Hermione and I fear what would have happened if I hadn't as there was nothing left of my robes that the potion hit early the next morning. Whilst this would have been enough of a concern, our Professor said something that caused me to pause, he said "Should I ask why you're caldron's shield was non-existent in the direction of Mr Potter and Miss Granger?" leading me and him to believe that this was intentional. However that is not the main reason I am writing as Hermione seems to have retreated into a shell of sorts and, from personal experience, I know what that's like, everything attempted by myself and the professors here is met with half-hearted answers. Please, I beg for help._

 _Yours sincerely, Harry Potter_

Both Grangers were very concerned, to say the least. They were glad that Hermione had someone wanting to help her, but with her past experience, their daughter had little experience with anyone helping her.

* * *

That morning, in Scotland, at breakfast, Harry and Hermione are sitting next to each other. Hermione had still barely said more than two words to anyone and Harry could only hope that he wouldn't lose his first and most likely only friend. This was the scene that saw Hedwig fly in and sit in front of Hermione whilst sticking her claw out, in it, a letter. "Is that for me?" a nod from Hedwig, "Who could be sending me mail? And why would they use your owl Harry?" she wondered whilst she opened it.

Once she finished reading, she had tears in her eyes, Harry was very worried. "Hermione?" was all he could get out before she wrapped her arms around Harry in the tightest hug he had ever received.

It wasn't to last though, "Miss Granger, while I would hope that this is warranted, I'm sure Harry would like to breathe." Professor Snape said.

This caused Hermione to release Harry whilst blushing heavily, thus causing most of the school to laugh at her, though the Slytherin contingent was silenced by a single look from Snape. Taking Hermione and Harry back into a spare room Snape raised a single eyebrow towards Hermione, waiting. She did not disappoint, "Harry wrote my parents and told them what had happened, and their response helped me calm myself," she took a deep breath, "When I was in Primary, some kids thought it would be funny to pour acid on my homework and books. Then they…"

Harry could see what happened next and fill in the rest, "So when you saw and heard what happened in potions on Monday, you went back to then, worried about what would happen next, that history would repeat itself."

Harry couldn't see her face anymore, it being buried into his chest, but he figured that she would have been just as terrified as he had been when he thought he would lose his only friend. Professor Snape sighed, it was stories like that that made him wonder about children's minds, "I promise that from now on, I will personally shield the caldrons of my pre-OWL students as it seems I cannot trust them with the safety of others. Next class will be about the safety procedures for potions and why one must follow them, hopefully, this will not happen again."

True to his word, the next Potions class was spent solely on safety measures and why they were important. In order to brew again, one had to pass a test given at the end of each class until they either passed or the fall term ended. While Professor Snape did not believe that anyone in his older classes would need to worry about it, in his Gryffindor/Slytherin first-year class, he wasn't so sure. Some students, like Mr Potter and Miss Granger, passed the test first time around. Others, like Mr Malfoy and Mr Weasley, well he wasn't too sure they would pass his class, never mind this one test.

* * *

Days turned into weeks and soon it was December, the previous months passed with little happening, Hermione had written her parents weekly and her last letter had her jumping for joy. Her parents had agreed to host Harry for Christmas, now all she needed to do was to tell him of this, no biggy right, just walk up to the boy she was crushing on and invite him to Christmas with her family… she was terrified, to say the least, she didn't want to even think about him rejecting it. She waited until he was alone, "Harry, can I ask you something?"

Harry nodded "Of course Hermione, what can I do for you?"

She began fiddling with her hair, "Well, I was kinda hoping that you might want to come to my place for Christmas?"

Harry was overwhelmed, it showed since Harry embraced Hermione "I'd be glad to come, would your parents mind?"

She shook her head "They were the ones to suggest that I ask you."

* * *

Later that day, a staff meeting had been called and all seemed to be well, then Severus spoke, "And Harry is leaving the castle for the Holidays."

This brought alarm to the Headmistress. "Where is he going?"

"Miss Granger has invited him to her home for Christmas, she says it was at the request of her parents, but I'm not so sure," he replied.

Professor Sprout raised an eyebrow, "Gossiping Severus? What's gotten into you?"

He shrugged, "When it is clear to a blind man how much they care for one another, it makes one think about it."

Professor Flitwick nodded, "Yes, they are quite the pair, and practically inseparable, though I think that incident at the start of the year might have helped that along."

Minerva nodded, "Quite and my grandson started a pool on when they will see what everyone else has and step up their relationship."

Everyone chuckled at that, except Severus, who simply stated: "I know, I've placed five Galleons on Christmas of their third year."

Everyone silenced at that, "Wait, Staff can get in on it?" Hagrid asked.

Severus nodded and soon everyone was trying to figure it out themselves. Then the hat spoke up, "It is good to see Harry settling into a normal life, depending on how Christmas goes, we may consider contacting the Grangers ourselves, maybe we could persuade them to take in the boy for the summer months."

Severus nodded, "Anything would be better than the life that he was leading, speaking of which, how are things with the Dursleys going? If worst comes to worst, I want to make their lives a living hell."

Minerva looked at a pile of parchment on her desk, "Amelia is coordinating with her muggle counterparts, turns out they hate the situation almost as much as us and will ensure that they pay." she replied.

With that, the meeting came to a close.

* * *

Soon the day came that students would board the Express. Harry was both looking forward and dreading his meeting with the Grangers, well, particularly Mr Granger. Since that day in September, Harry had been thinking long and hard about Hermione and was slowly unravelling what it was that he felt, though he had a lot of ground to cover before he could figure out what it was, after all, his social experiences weren't typical of an eleven-year-old boy. But that was hours away, as it stood, he had a six to seven-hour journey with Hermione and he was looking forward to it. Roughly an hour into the journey, Hermione looked at Harry, "Harry? Can I tell you something?"

He nodded, "Of course Hermione."

She sighed, it was easy for her to talk to Harry, almost too easy, but she felt as though she needed to tell him this. "I've never had anyone stay over before, I never had any friends during school and with you being the first, I didn't want you to…" she trailed off, but Harry knew what she was going to say and knew she had to get it off her chest. "I don't want you to laugh at me." she finished meekly.

Harry shook his head "Why would I laugh at you? It's your home, I'm merely a guest."

Tears began to collect in Hermione's eyes, no one had ever been considerate of her. The next thing she knew, she was hugging Harry for all his worth. Harry rubbed her back, "Hermione, I know what it's like, being friendless I mean, I promise that I'll always be your friend," he whispered before pulling back slightly, "Now and forever."

Embracing again, neither child saw the dull glow surrounding them, but they knew, they would never again be alone...

* * *

 _ **With that, the end of the second Chapter comes upon us. I wish to clear a few things up that was brought to my attention in the reviews of the first chapter: Firstly, ClaireR89 brought up that I used Depute rather than Deputy, as Hogwarts is in Scotland, I used what I remembered of the school system from friends and that is how they refer to the Deputy, if I am wrong, please let me know, my information could be out of date. Secondly, Rajiv A. Rajaram brought up that Alba, as a third-year would have been two or three during his visits to the Potters, I explain this by saying that Grandmum Minerva would have brought her Grandson once in a while to visit her favourite students and their son. some weren't surprised that the kids ended up in Slytherin but one guest was surprised that they were the only in their year group, to this I say, if one was to follow the Dark Lord even when he has a track record of being soundly defeated, that is either bravery or the highest accord or immense stupidity, hence most of them would have been Gryffindors.**_


	3. Chapter 3

Hours passed, but for Harry and Hermione, it seemed like mere minutes. As soon as they reached Kings Cross, Harry was struggling to contain his apprehension and Hermione noticed. "They'll love you, Harry, you became my first and only friend."

Harry seemed skeptical, "I don't doubt that Hermione, that being said, it feels more intimidating than it would, and I'm not sure why."

She looked him over, "You're afraid of meeting my father."

He shrugged, "Perhaps, though I'm not sure why."

They didn't say anymore as they crossed the barrier into the muggle world. Waiting for them, Mr and Mrs Granger wrapped Hermione in a hug, then Mrs Granger noticed Harry, "You must be Harry Potter," After he nodded, she wrapped him in a bone-crushing hug, it was clear to Harry where Hermione's came from. "Thank you so much for what you've done, I don't think you know just what you've done for our girl."

She released Harry and Mr Granger walked up to them, eye running over him and red flags were springing up so fast, one would have only seen red. Between Harry's physique, the boy was wearing clothes at least two, maybe three sizes too large. He put that to the wayside when he saw Harry's face though, it was clear to him that he knew exactly what he had done and carried a weight on his soul. "Hello Harry, Call us Dan and Emma, none of that Mr and Mrs, it makes us feel old." he joked whilst holding out his hand.

"I'll do my best, si… Dan," he said, shaking Dan's hand.

Dan smirked, "We'll work on it, shall we get started?"

Walking out of the station, they made their way to the car and soon they were on their way to Crawley. Once they reached their home Emma suggested that Hermione show Harry his room, but when Hermione practically dragged Harry behind her, she was surprised to see Dan following, "Daniel!"

He turned and simply said, "It's not what you're thinking."

Sure enough, when he reached the guest room, he saw Harry in shock at the size of the room and Hermione didn't know what to do. Eventually, she asked, "Harry? Is there something wrong?"

Harry, coming out of his daze, replied: "Wrong, heavens no, it's perfect."

It was at this moment that Dan made his presence know, "Why don't we sit in the family room and discuss this if that is okay with you Harry."

All Harry could do was nod, while he didn't really want to talk about his past life, he knew that if he was going to be close friends with their daughter, he would have to tell them about himself. As soon as everyone was seated, Harry spoke up, "My life, prior to Hogwarts was bad, to say the least. Before Hermione quite literally ran into me, I never had any friends, my 'cousin' chasing them off. He and his friends had this game, 'Harry Hunting' they called it, I had to run or hide as if they found me, I was beaten to within an inch of my life." Harry ignored the gasps from Emma and Hermione, "When I could reach the stove, I was four I believe, I made Breakfast and Dinner for everyone whilst getting scraps myself if I got food at all. Sometimes they would lock me in my cupboard, I never knew how long they would keep me there as I would be in too much pain to think straight, after all, my 'uncle' would try to beat the 'freakishness' out of me. My first and only gift was when Hagrid, the groundskeeper for Hogwarts, told me I was a Wizard and gave me Hedwig." he then realised just how much he had said, "I guess I've ranted long enough." he then waited for the inevitable, in his mind, lashing that would come.

Much to his surprise, it didn't, Hermione buried her head in Harry's shoulder, tears falling freely, Emma shaking badly, and Dan had a determined look in his eyes. "Is there anyone at school that can help you?" he asked.

Harry nodded, "Madam Bones, the head of the Wizarding police is working on getting me away from them and the school matron is helping me heal properly, then I'll be able to focus on my growth and future health."

Dan stood, "Walk with me please." and walked outside, once Harry followed, he began, "I was a soldier during the Falklands War and I can recognize when a soldier or veteran was suffering from their mind and what they had seen, what have you seen?"

Harry tried to brush it off, "It's nothing sir."

Dan shook his head, "It not the wounds we can see that are the worst, but the ones we can't."

Tears began to stream down his face, "When I was six, there was a girl, she got between Dudley and me, shielding me from blow after blow. Afterwards, she was never the same again, she had suffered several broken bones. Later that week she moved away." he had to stop and compose himself as it haunted him for five years now, "It was my fault, I think I spent whatever was left of the school year and most of the summer in my cupboard."

Dan could see it was tearing Harry apart, and could also see that he could do little to fix it, but he could help some, "Harry she made a choice, she could have stayed away and not gotten hurt, but then you would have gotten hurt and possibly worse than she did. But she chose to get between you and Dudley, possibly saving you."

Harry shrugged, "Perhaps, but I've never been able to forgive myself. And I always worry that something like that might happen again, I really don't want Hermione to be hurt because of me."

Dan looked at the young boy who seemed to be a man. His heart was breaking for the toil Harry had to suffer, but he was thankful that he had Hermione's interests at heart. Putting his hand on his shoulder, he said, "We best head back inside, don't want the girls thinking we've gone missing."

Heading back in, Harry was engulfed by Hermione. Her parents knew that they needed a moment and left the room. Upon entering the other room though, Emma turned to Dan, "What happened out there?"

Dan sighed, "He carries a great deal of pain with him, some of it concerns the fact that he doesn't want Hermione hurt." he shook his head, "That boy loves her, but just doesn't know it yet."

Emma nodded, "I think we're looking at our future son, but want do we do to help him?"

Dan looked his wife in the eyes, never had she seen such intensity and determination in him before, "There is very little we can do, but support him, if we can, maybe we should talk to this Madam Bones woman and see about applying for guardianship for Harry, if nothing else, it will get him away from those… people."

Emma nodded, "For now though, let's give him the best Christmas ever."

* * *

Christmas would be merry for the Granger house, and for the children, it would be the most special Christmas they had had ever. Christmas Eve was spent touring London and looking at the displays around town before heading back to Crawley, Harry had insisted that the Grangers did not change their traditions on his account, and so, at seven in the evening, Harry found himself sitting in church, listening to the sermon; the priest was preaching the virtues of kindness, _Fitting,_ Harry thought, _my first service and they talk about the thing that brought great joy into my life._ Soon though, it was time to turn in for the night, with a goodnight hug from Hermione, Harry's dreams were all pleasant ones about a certain brown-haired witch.

Christmas Morning arrived and, instead of sleeping in, like he always did, Harry was awakened very early in the morning by Hermione. "Wake up Harry, it's Christmas!" she said, jumping on top of him.

Harry looked at the clock and groaned, "Hermione, it's five in the morning, is this normal?"

Hermione's face fell, "I'm sorry Harry, I forgot that this is your first Christmas."

She was about to leave when she felt his arms wrap around her, they stayed like that for a moment before Harry spoke up, "I don't think you understand how happy your thoughtfulness makes me, that you are willing to put up with me for Christmas and include me in your traditions…" he trailed off before speaking his mind in a strained voice, it was clear he was fighting back tears, "Is this what a family's supposed to be like? So caring?"

Hermione had lost her battle with tears as she wrapped her arms around him, she could only nod.

Soon though, they had to make their way downstairs. As Hermione walked down with Harry, her mind wandered. Unlike Harry, she had grown up in a loving environment and she also read romance novels, she felt sort of scared, she wasn't certain but she believed that that moment in Harry's arms was going to be one of, if not the most treasured memory she would ever have. Upon reaching the sitting room where the Christmas tree was, Harry's face lit up so brightly that one would have been forgiven for thinking that the lights of the tree weren't on. It only brightened when they started handing presents to him, most of them were practical; new clothes in his size, a watch that worked, ect., but Hermione's gift to him was the most precious. It was a book, the covers were white and all of the pages were blank, all but the first one, where there was a picture of last night with the caption ' _Harry's first Christmas Eve_ ' soon Harry's smile was matched by Hermione's as Harry actually initiated a hug. All she could hear was him whispering "Thank you," over and over.

It was clear to all the Grangers that the simplest act of kindness would be treasured by Harry. This affirmed Dan and Emma's belief that Harry would benefit from leaving the Dursley's and they would be more than happy to take him in.

* * *

They were enjoying a small Christmas dinner when a knock sounded from the front door. Opening the door admitted a shock to the Grangers, "Good evening Mr Granger, I am Severus Snape, your daughter's head of house and Potions professor. I apologize for interrupting your Christmas, but we of Hogwarts would like to ask you and your family a few things."

Dan nodded, "Of course, perhaps you'll be able to answer a few of ours as well."

"Let us hope," Severus agreed.

Entering the sitting room, Dan introduced Emma and Severus nodded to Hermione and Harry. "Well you two, are you enjoying your Christmas?" he asked.

Harry just beamed, "Yes sir, this is the best first Christmas I could have had."

Severus smiled, "Good, that is in part why I am here," he then saw that the Grangers were paying close attention, "I don't know what Harry and Hermione told you, but he seems to be comfortable here. We were hoping that perhaps, as his original guardians are… indisposed, that you would consent to be his guardians in the muggle world."

Harry asked the question on everyone's mind, "What happened to them?"

Severus looked at Harry, "They are the first muggle prisoners of Azkaban, it was decided that with your status in the Wizarding world, they would be tried in the Wizarding laws." he then noticed the questioning looks, "Azkaban would make Hell look like a day camp, it's guarded by Dementors, the foulest creatures on the planet. They suck out you happiest thoughts causing most to go mad in years, but they can also suck out one's soul with the 'Dementor's Kiss' the Dark Lord's prefered method of killing."

Everyone shuttered at that, then Severus quickly changed the subject, "If it's not possible then we will look elsewhere, we just decided to come here first seeing as though they've been nearly inseparable the first of the term,"

Dan nodded, "We've noticed that too, one would think they're joined at the hip." he joked.

Harry and Hermione turned bright red at this, they were unused to being teased in such a manner. Emma saved them from too much more embarrassment though, "We'd be happy to take Harry in, we were actually discussing that since we picked them up from King's Cross."

Hermione was surprised, she thought that she would have to convince her parents to do it. Instead, she finds out that she'll be seeing a lot more of Harry. Severus looked at Harry, "Would you like to live here Harry?"

Harry just nodded, far too overwhelmed to speak and Severus smiled, "Excellent, oh before I forget again," he reached into his bag and pulled out a photo album, "I promised I would give this to you, but it took longer than I thought to find."

Opening it, Harry looked at all of the pictures Severus had of his mother. Then he got to the back, it was a picture of Harry as a baby in the arms of Severus and his mother and father looking on joyfully, "That was taken the day before your parents went into hiding, October first of Eighty-one." tears appeared in his eyes, "less than a month later, they were dead."

Harry thanked Severus and he and Hermione went off to bed.

Emma noticed that Severus seemed more emotional at that last picture, "What happened?"

Severus sighed, "They said that should anything happen to them, that I was to raise Harry unless their will stated otherwise, no one was able to open the will and with the turmoil surrounding me, I was unable to fight for Harry."

"It's not your fault, as you said, you were unable to fight for Harry and you might not have been able to provide for him when he was a child, but you've been doing that since he got to Hogwarts, right?" at Severus' nod, she continued, "Then you've been doing what they asked you to do. Sure it's eleven years later, but you're trying."

* * *

With that Severus took his leave and went back to Hogwarts where he was immediately surrounded by all of the staff asking what had happened. "It turns out Harry's got more allies than he knows, the Grangers were discussing applying for guardianship since they arrived at the station."

The hat spoke up, "That's good, I need to speak with Severus and Minerva for a moment."

Everyone cleared out, "Fergus? What is it?" Minerva asked.

Severus was getting over the shock that the sorting hat had a name when Fergus spoke up, "During the sorting, I sensed something, a Soul Bond." then Fergus dropped the real bombshell, "It was Mr Potter and Miss Granger."

Much to Minerva's surprise she heard a thud coming from her side and saw Severus sprawled across the floor. Casting an enervate, Severus woke up and said, "Harry and Hermione are Soul-Bound?"

Fergus nodded, as much as a hat can and replied, "Yes, and I sense they've already moved on to the second stage. We must watch them to see when they move on to the third then guide them through the fourth."

Minerva was confused, rightfully so as there wasn't a lot of information on Soul Bonds, "Fergus, why do we need to guide them?"

Fergus smirked, "Because the final stage will see them married and that with come with their loss of innocence and nine months later the first of the new generations of Potters will be born." then he chuckled, "The fourth stage gradually gets them to that level of intimacy. All we have to do is make sure nothing happens too fast, I doubt the Grangers could handle Hermione being a mother at twelve."

On that thought, they parted ways. Very little happened for the rest of the Christmas Holidays and Harry and Hermione found themselves sitting on the Express heading back to Hogwarts. Harry was happy he had a new family and Hermione was glad that she would be close to Harry no matter what happened, even if her heart and mind were disagreeing. But she would soon find out what it truly meant to be head over heels...

* * *

 _ **Well, there is the third chapter, now for the answering of the reviews: Guest of April 11; thank you for your kind words, I never really thought that Harry's behaviour was that consistent with his life experiences and, as a bullying victim myself, I knew what one would act like in general. Rajiv; well the main reason it's Christmas already is the fact that very little happened since Harry didn't make it on to the Quidditch team and Malfoy was scared of his godfather's, Professor Snape's, response to challenging one of his two first years to a duel. pschlegs62; Crabbe and Goyle, good question, they had neither the cunning of a Slytherin nor the bravery of a Gryffindor, and the lacked the wit and intellect of a Ravenclaw so I guess Hufflepuff would be their house, I actually didn't think about them, to be honest.**_

 _ **Thank you all for viewing and reviewing, this is nearly my most viewed and reviewed story, with 25 reviews and over 3000 views in less than 13 days, my last story to reach that took over six months. Thank you all again.**_


	4. Chapter 4

January strangely passed without anything notable happening, but February would be anything but.

Harry was sitting in the library, thinking about Hermione, sort of. A few weeks ago Alba pulled Harry aside and spoke with him…

* * *

 _ **-FlashBack-**_

 _Harry was walking towards the Great Hall for breakfast, it had only been two days since they returned from the holidays and Hermione had taken ill so he was walking but himself when he heard his name, "Harry!" turning to the voice, he smiled for it was Alba. "Harry, I'm glad I found you, I wanted to talk with you."_

 _Harry raised his eyebrow, "What do you need Alba?"_

 _Alba looked around, "You remember when I told you and Miss Granger about the houses here, right?" at Harry's nod, he continued, "The reason for that, do you remember what I told you?"_

 _Harry nodded, "You have some seer capabilities, though they mostly focus on one's intentions and personalities. One side effect is that you can see deep subconscious memories, often your own."_

 _Alba nodded his head, "And I know that it may seem odd to mention, but trust me on this, how do you feel about Miss Granger?"_

 _Harry's face fell, "In all honesty, I've not a bloody clue, though that might be down to how I was raised."_

 _A flash of anger crossed Alba's face for a moment, Harry had trusted him with the secret of his childhood, "If your 'Aunt' and 'Uncle' weren't already in Azkaban, I'd make them regret their decisions," he muttered, before smirking, "I can't tell you what you feel, but might I recommend that you take up some light reading on a couple of subjects, tell Madam Pince that a friend recommends 'The Princess Bride' and other titles of similar genres."_

 _ **-End FlashBack-**_

* * *

Harry had done just that, with many years of hindsight, his first clue to his intentions should have been when Madam Pince smirked at his request. On second thought, maybe his first clue should have been the title of the book that Alba suggested, but Harry was a clueless boy and he still didn't know what Alba was on about. "Harry!" _Well, speak of the devil._

Alba came up to him, considering the timing, it would be cutting it fine, but Harry wouldn't know that yet, "Harry, have ye figured it out yet?"

Harry shook his head, "No, remember what my experience is and remember that it will take me time to figure it out."

Alba smirked, "Well, in any case, next Wednesday is Valentine's Day, a day dreaded by men for millennia and looked forward to by the fair women of the world. I'm heading into Hogsmeade to pick up things for those second and first years whom can't get things for their partners, is there something you would like me to pick up for Miss Granger?" he asked cheekily.

Harry turned beet red, "I wouldn't know what if I would say yes."

Alba shrugged, "That, I can take care of; now, what do you say?"

Harry thought for a moment, "Sure, could you make sure she knows that it's from me though? I don't I would have the courage to give it personally."

Alba chuckled, "All right, I mean the Hat did place you in Slytherin, not Gryffindor. Catch you later."

Alba proved to have the most impressive timing ever for, as soon as he left, Hermione entered the Library and Harry lost track of time soon thereafter. They could talk about anything and nothing and still enjoy themselves and the time would just fly.

* * *

February 14 came and many owls flooded the Great Hall during breakfast. Hermione looked at the flood with wistful longing in her eyes. She knew that it was unlikely she would get anything and so turned back to her eggs and toast. Harry though had the unenviable joy of receiving seemingly all the valentines in Britain, but he had Professor Snape send them to the common room, it was embarrassing after all. All of a sudden, the entire hall went silent and Hermione looked up, there, amongst the hoards of owls, was Hedwig, in one claw, a card and in the other, a bouquet on the brightest red roses anyone had ever seen. No one on the staff table was at all surprised to see the beautiful owl make a dive for Hermione's spot. Hermione opened the card and, much to the amusement of the older Slytherins, whilst she read it, Harry was sweating like a madman. He needn't have worried though, for as soon as she finished the card, she embraced Harry for all he was worth.

At the staff table, Professor McGonagall was muttering under her breath, "Come on say the words one of you."

Professor Flitwick looked at his colleague, "Minerva, calm down!" he quietly threatened.

Severus glared at them, "Just because you have money on them getting together today, doesn't mean you can interfere, after all, you don't see me trying to delay them."

Meanwhile, Harry was trying to breathe but it wasn't until Alba said something that Hermione loosened her hold on the boy, though she didn't completely let go. But the bell rang, signalling that everyone was to start heading to class. Then Harry leaned into her ear, "Happy Valentine's Day Hermione."

"Thank you, Harry," she whispered back.

Most of the day passed uneventfully, granted, there were many hostile glares that were sent towards Hermione, but they went largely ignored. Late in the day, Harry was sitting in the Great Hall, studying with Professor Flitwick when he felt cold all of a sudden. Professor Flitwick noticed his change and asked him what was wrong, "I don't know sir, it's like I'm in danger or something."

Just as he was about to continue, Neville Longbottom ran into the Hall, "Harry! I overheard some of the older students yelling at Hermione, apparently, they don't like the affection you've given her and wish to make it so that way 'you'll see sense and leave the mudblood' according to them."

Harry grew red with rage, "Where's Hermione?" he growled.

Neville shrugged, "Last I saw her, she was on the second floor, but who knows now, it took a few minutes to find you."

"We might be able to help!" a pair of voices said from behind Harry.

Turning to face them, Harry saw the red-headed twins, Fred and George Weasley. "How?" was all he could get out as his fear was climbing at a rapid rate.

The leftmost twin pulled out a piece of parchment and pointed his wand at it, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good." and a map of the grounds formed.

Professor Flitwick ignored the fact that a map that showed everyone's position on it was in the hands of the two pranksters of Hogwarts for a moment as he scanned for her name. "There! The closest classroom to the Library." he couldn't get any more out as Harry took off faster than any broom. Looking at the assembled students her gestured towards Harry, "Well, follow him, I must find the Headmistress at once."

Harry reached the classroom Hermione was in and slowly opened the door, but all pretence of caution flew out the window as he saw her curled up in a corner of the room crying. "Hermione," he said, hoping to get some reaction out of her, but he didn't. He stepped up to her and put his arms around her and did his best at soothing her. It seemed to work though as she, through her tears, told him what they had told her. That she was not worthy of being in anyone's presence much less the hero of the Wizarding World's, that she was ugly and that soon he would leave her for "A proper Pureblood" woman, etc. To say that Harry was angry would be like saying that there was breathable air on Earth, a rather large understatement. "Hermione, I now see what Alba told me a few weeks ago, I thought that reading the books he mentioned would make me understand but I now see that they're wrong, oh so very wrong. You're the most beautiful girl that I've had the pleasure of meeting, I could never, nor would I ever want to, date anyone other than you. You who've known the true me, not some story told to children. I guess that I'm saying that if you would have me, would you be my girlfriend?"

Hermione shot into his arms, "Yes I most definitely would!" she said before landing her lips on his and drawing him into their first kiss. But, before they could say anything, they blacked out.

* * *

Several hours later, Harry and Hermione woke up in the Hospital wing, confused and quite overjoyed. " _Good lord, she's a good kisser! Especially if we had to end up here!"_ Harry thought.

"Why thank you, Harry, you're not half bad yourself," Hermione said from the other bed.

Harry paused, "Hermione? I didn't say anything."

Hermione was very puzzled, "I swore I heard you say that I was a good kisser?"

"I think we can answer that!" they heard.

They turned and saw Professors McGonagall, Snape and Flitwick as well as the Sorting Hat and Madam Pomfrey. The Sorting Hat looked quite chuffed for a hat, "What? did you think that between every Professor at Hogwarts we wouldn't have an answer?"

Before Harry could answer that, Professor Snape spoke up, "It turns out that a lot has happened since your first kiss…"

* * *

 _ **-FlashBack-**_

 _While Harry and Hermione were sharing their first kiss, Neville and the Weasley Twins were shocked to see them glowing, but before anyone could say anything, Harry and Hermione passed out. They had the worst timing it turned out "Does anyone else smell that?" Fred asked._

 _A loud crash was heard and part of the wall fell out. After the dust settled, a troll was seen entering the room. "Fred? George? Ideas?" Neville asked._

 _The twins looked at each other, "Grab them and run!" was the consensus they came to._

 _It worked, for a second, but the troll was blocking their exit. Seeing this, the twins started casting their most powerful stunners but the troll just shrugged them off. Neville, seeing no other alternative, used the distractions that came from their actions and clambered up the troll's body and stuck his wand up the troll's nose and shot his own stunner, it did had the intended effect and the troll did fall unconscious, but he did just that, fall._

 _Thankfully Neville jumped clear and Professors McGonagall and Flitwick came and saw the aftermath. Upon hearing what the two Slytherins did, they brought them to the medical wing where they slept for two hours._

 _ **-End FlashBack-**_

* * *

"... in the end we awarded quite a lot of house points to them, something I never thought I would say about the Weasley twins, and, after they were checked over by Poppy, sent them back to their dorms." He finished.

Minerva looked at them, "I know you're wondering what that was that knocked you out. That was the third stage of something called a 'Soul-Bond', I believe that the Muggles call it a 'match made in heaven' but Magic can actually detect that and it becomes a legal marriage in many years, hopefully at least." she said before smiling.

Snape sighed, "We're never going to hear the end of this are we?" to which Minerva's grin just widened, "I thought not," he muttered before turning to the children, "There was a betting pool to see when you two would start dating, the Headmistress here won the bet and now we are never going to hear the end of it." he chuckled.

Minerva smirked, "Just because you're five Galleons lighter and I've become several hundred Galleons heavier doesn't mean you get to mope."

That got Harry's attention, "How many people entered?" he asked, quite shocked.

Snape thought for a moment, "All of Slytherin, most of the staff, a couple Ravenclaws, and about half of the Hufflepuffs, mostly the men or younger years."

Then the Sorting Hat spoke up, "In the history of magic, there have only ever been three Soul-Bonds; the first being King Arthur and his Queen Guinevere, whilst the second and third being the founders of Hogwarts, Godric with Rowena, and Salazar with Helga." he paused for a moment, "There are five stages to a Soul-Bond; the first where you haven't yet met your Soulmate, the second where you have met your Soulmate and made an everlasting promise to them, I sense that this took place on the train to King's Cross, the third, where you are now after your first kiss, the fourth where you get slightly… er more intimate, and the final when you will be recognised as a married couple in the eyes of magic with your finality." as he had been saying this the professor grew redder by the second and once they had heard the full story, Harry and Hermione were outdoing their professors. Thankfully the hat spoke quickly, "Typically, finality is reached at a mature age, but we have no concrete evidence so all I can say is to use your brains and not your nether regions to think."

"Fergus!" McGonagall shouted, "If you say anything to that effect again you will only leave the office for the sorting!"

Properly chastised, Fergus continued, "With your bond, you'll gain some new abilities, this all started when Harry sensed that Hermione was in danger, that came with the second stage, your telepathic abilities with each other will start now, and in the fourth stage you'll be able to share magical power. Nothing comes of the final stage as it was seen that marriage was a great enough gift."

Harry's face was pensive for a time, then he said, "Considering the circumstances I am in, does anyone have any advice as to how I should break the news to my parents-in-law?"

The men just smiled and said "Good Luck!" before taking off. McGonagall at least stayed to help him, "Since it seems they loved you from the start, I'd say that you should just be yourself."

With that in mind, both Harry and Hermione shut their eyes and slept, only waking the next morning.

* * *

 _ **Chapter Three is in the bag, yes, I know that they are proceeding rather fast for that age and that it seems as though I will stop at the end of the Sorcerers stone, but I promise that I will complete all seven years.**_

 ** _In regards to reviews: god of all, ObsessedWithHPFanFic, alba, Cheryl, and WriternotAuthor, thank you all for your kind words in regards to my story as it was really needed to push this chapter out. pschlegs62, we shall see, I haven't decided about what to do with the 'would have been Slytherins' yet but there will be answers. jkarr, I would have thought that the Grangers would have taken him in if they had known so there it is. leonix2009, in general, it seemed that Harry's life in the canon was 'his life is shit and there is nothing we can do' so he desperately needed a break. aidansidhe, thank you, I'll get that fixed in a bit. SLYNNR, we'll have to see how the other houses respond. Katzztar and anyone who is confused about that thing, that was my bad, I should have written the explanation much earlier than this, but that said, I how that this chapter answers your questions._**

 ** _With that out of the way, I would like to clarify something; one reviewer remarked that they wished me luck with my story, but that they wouldn't read anymore since Harry and Hermione are in Slytherin; it is their choice and all I will say is that it is a shame but I don't expect this story to be everyone's cup of tea. However, another reviewer chose to take issue with my story with the writing style while not offering any tips on how I could improve it then they spent many words bashing why Harry would not have gone along with many of the events of the first chapter based on his own experiences, to this I say "IT'S A WORK OF FICTION! WRITTEN BY A FAN!" with that out of my system, if you have criticisms on my story, at least make sure you offer possible fixes for it rather then a block of text that boils down to 'your wrong!'_**

 ** _6500 views and 38 reviews! Thank you all, this support means the world to me as does the 239 followers and 127 favourites and the 3 communities that have added this story to their notice. All of this in three weeks, thank you._**


	5. Chapter 5

The following morning was a rather eventful one. Starting off with a bang, Minerva gave everyone whom was involved with the bullying of Hermione a month of detention with each Head of House, effectively putting them in detention until the end of the year; given that most of the offenders were Gryffindor, many believed at first that she was being soft on her house, that could not have been farther from the truth if she had tried. Though they weren't in her house, she was very protective of Harry and Hermione, and, as such, she had actually pushed for the offenders to be expelled, but was persuaded by Professor Flitwick to drag their punishment out. As the Head of House with the only other house who participated, Filus was very angry with his claws and quite ready to express his displeasure. Pomona and Severus were quite happy that none of their charges took part and more than happy to take part in the punishment and as there were twenty students, all girls, they were ready.

* * *

What no one could have predicted though, was Hedwig gliding through the Great Hall, almost mournfully. Landing in front of Harry and Hermione, Harry noticed that his owl seemed sad, especially when she didn't take any breakfast from him. Alba noticed this and shuttered, "I've got a bad feeling about this," he whispered to himself.

Alba's fears proved to be well-founded as, after reading the letter attached to Hedwig, Hermione handed it to Harry before breaking into tears. Harry, seeing the state his new girlfriend was in, dreaded reading the letter but had no choice.

* * *

 _Dear Miss Granger,_

 _It is with a heavy heart that I must be the bearer of bad news. At approximately three in the afternoon, yesterday, February 14, armed wizards broke into your house. I'm sorry to say that your parents were among those that didn't make it. I am aware that you've got a Soul-Bond with Mr Harry Potter, the working theory is that a group of Death Eaters that got off from punishment in the war committed this act as an act of revenge against Mr Potter. I will personally keep you informed of the status of the investigation, again, you have my deepest condolences._

 _Yours Sincerely, Madam Amelia Bones, Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement._

* * *

Harry had nothing to say, there was little to say considering. He chose to wrap his arms around Hermione, if nothing else, he hoped that his presence would calm her.

Alba had been sitting next to Harry, and when Harry set the letter on the table and wrapped his arms around Hermione, he got a chance to see what had happened. Upon seeing the contents of the letter, Alba looked at his fellow Slytherins, who were waiting to see what he said, and just drew a circle with a finger.

Much to the astonishment of the staff, all of Slytherin circled around Harry and Hermione to lend their support. By the time that Severus and Minerva got to the couple, a handful of students were still offering support whilst most of the house were forming a protective circle around them, with many hard glares being sent to the Gryffindors and those whom bullied Hermione yesterday as well as those whispering.

Before either of them could say anything, Alba shoved the letter into his grandmother's hands and waited. By the time Minerva had finished, she was a little misty-eyed herself, "I don't think Miss Granger or Mister Potter need to attend classes today." then she looked at the Slytherin contingent, "I don't think I'll see any Slytherins today either, will I?"

Alba shrugged, "I certainly won't be, like you told us when we were little first years fresh off the train, 'Our house will be our family here at Hogwarts', and I think they need some family," before his face grimaced, "We won't be able to replace that which she lost, but we can help."

With that, he shook Harry's shoulder and whispered into his ear that they could leave for the common room. Hermione wouldn't walk on her own, much less let Harry go, so Harry scooped her up bridal style and carried her all the way to the common room.

* * *

Harry and Hermione spent the rest of the day surrounded by their housemates and Severus even cancelled his Potions classes to help them. No one said a thing, apart from Severus calling for the house elves to provide sandwiches to his charges. Finally, just before Severus was going to tell them to head off to bed, Alba got his violin and played as soothingly as possible, it worked for a time, as both Harry and Hermione fell asleep on the couch they were sitting on. Severus, not having the heart to move them, conjured a blanket to cover them both, then he turned to the rest of the house, "I trust you will all take care of them?"

After they all nodded, he went to his quarters, but soon found that he couldn't sleep, nor could any of the other staff members as the flooed into his quarters. Minerva broke the silence, "How are they, Severus?"

He shook his head, "Silent, and that has me worried. They've been growing more talkative ever since the incident at the start of the year and they were quite talkative after Christmas, but now, they've slipped into their old selves."

Professor Flitwick rubbed his face and groaned, "And we've got another problem," he continued once he knew he had everyone's attention, "Gringotts tells me that neither Doctor Granger filed a will, either in the Muggle or Magical worlds."

This deflated everyone even further, then Professor Trelawney spoke up, "As Bondmates, they could live together," everyone rounded on her so she continued quickly, "Since the Potter Wills were never opened, all that has to happen is the reading of those wills and then follow them in accordance in regards as to where Harry was supposed to go and send Hermione with him."

A shock came over the professors, that was the first bit of helpful advice Trelawney had given in years. But it was determined to be sound and they decided to do that in the coming days.

* * *

The following morning, Severus and Minerva canceled their classes for the day and went down to the Slytherin common room where they found most of Slytherin dozing gently while Harry and Hermione, as well as a few Slytherins, were wide awake, nodding to the older Slytherins, Severus and Minerva told them what they were going to do and they agreed. They used the Floo in Minerva's office to get to the Leaky Caldron and entered the Alley to Gringotts. Harry was surprised to see that the Alley was rather empty, but Minerva explained it to be that "Students don't usually buy school supplies during the school year."

Arriving at Gringotts, Minerva brought them to the teller, whom Harry recognised immediately, "A pleasure to see you again Griphook." he said to the goblin.

Griphook was surprised, "You remember my name, Mister Potter?"

Harry nodded, "Of course I do, you were the goblin that took me down to my vault to buy school supplies, which until recently was my happiest memory ever."

Griphook said very little more as he led them through the maze of corridors before ending at a door marked "Director's" and leading them in.

The regal-looking goblin behind the desk stood, "Welcome Lord Potter, my apologies for not doing this when you were first in the bank, but by the time Griphook's supervisor notified me, you were long gone."

Harry was stunned, "Forgive me, Director, I'm afraid I've got no idea why I should have been brought to you then?"

The Director frowned, "That is concerning, please sit, I fear we have much to discuss," he said before calling for refreshments, "Now before we get into the nitty-gritty of it, I assume there is a reason for which two Hogwarts students and Hogwarts professors are out of school during the school day?"

Minerva nodded, "Miss Granger's parents were recently killed just after she and Mister Potter embarked on the third stage of their Soul-Bond, seeing as though the Potter Wills were never read, we were hoping that they would give instructions as to Harry's care and then we would ask if Hermione would stay with Harry as well."

Director Ragnok nodded, "I see, the first thing we must do is an inheritance test to ensure that Lord Potter is receiving all that he is due, standard procedure you see, then we'll read the Wills and go from there," turning to Harry he spoke again "My Lord, the test is just a pinprick of blood from your finger and three drops of blood will collect in this bowl, wherein the wound will heal. Are you prepared to take it now?"

Harry nodded and did as he had been told. As a mist settled over the bowl Ragnok spoke again, "As that could take some time, let us discuss why you should have been brought before me in August," he paused to collect his thoughts and take a sip of tea, "As the last Scion of the Most Ancient and Noble House Potter, you are eligible to take your Lordship from the age of eleven, most, like Scion Longbottom, choose to claim their Lordship upon graduation from Hogwarts, as they have a Proxy in place to run the house until then, however, you, my Lord, have no such Proxy and should take up your headship now, so that your family businesses don't fall into ruin."

Hermione spoke up at that, "Family businesses?"

Ragnok nodded, "As it stands, the Potter Family owns several Apothecaries and most bookshops with the exception of Flourish and Blotts, where you own a third of the company, it should really have the name Potter somewhere, but Lord James Potter, your father, didn't want the recognition, choosing instead to be a silent backer. Apart from them, you also control the Prophet news corporation, a good thing too, that paper has been more usable as a toilet rag than a newspaper but it's the only one in Britain that is published daily, hence the name. The Potter name makes about thirty odd million Galleons in profit a year, roughly one point five billion Pounds Sterling." Ragnok paused, letting Harry digest that, and allowing the lineage test finish, upon looking at the parchment, his jaw dropped and he had to compose himself to copy it and call in his assistant, "Make sure all the rings are presented to us now!" he ordered, before turning to the stunned humans, to which he just handed Harry the parchment.

As Harry read it, he understood the Director's reaction.

 _ **Harry James Potter**_

 _ **Born**_ _: July 31, 1980_

 _ **Parents**_ _: James Potter and Lily Potter nee Evans_

 _ **SoulMate**_ _: Hermione Jean Granger_

 _ **Most Ancient and Noble Houses**_ _:_

 _Potter (F)_

 _Evans (M)_

 _Peverell (F)_

 _Black (Godfather)_

 _ **Most Ancient and Most Noble Houses**_ _:_

 _Gryffindor (F)_

 _Ravenclaw (M)_

 _Slytherin (C)_

 _ **Royal Houses:**_

 _Windsor* (M)_

 _Pendragon** (M)_

 _ **Miscellaneous Houses**_ _:_

 _Bones***_

 _Longbottom***_

 _ **Official Title**_ _: Lord Harry James Potter-Evans-Peverell-Black-Gryffindor-Ravenclaw-Slytherin-Pendragon-Windsor; High King of Magical Britain, High King of Scotland, Duke of the Highlands, Duke of Hogwarts_

 _ **Shortened Title:**_ _Lord Harry James Potter-Pendragon-Windsor_

 _* denotes fourth in line at present time behind the Prince of Wales, Prince William and Prince Harry_

 _** denotes primary Heir of the Magical Crown_

 _*** denotes secondary heir in accordance with the Alliance of Three during the Voldemort war_

 _M-Mother_

 _F-Father_

 _C-Conquest_

 _Note that families without a magical background cannot show up on this test._

Harry looked at Hermione, knowing that this was a lot to take in. Hermione was surprisingly calm, "I always knew you were special Harry, I just thought it was in the way that a person feels about their love."

Harry then looked at the professors, "How do I go about this without sounding like a pompous prick like Malfoy?"

"Just be yourself, Harry, that is all you can do," Minerva said and Severus nodded.

Harry then looked at Ragnok, "I trust that if I have to sign letters with my official title, that I can get a stamp made, I'd forget most of my titles I'm afraid."

Ragnok laughed, "Don't worry Sire, I can have a stamp made for you."

Harry smiled, "Please Director, call me Harry."

Ragnok was stunned, never had a wizard offered to be on a first name basis with the goblins, not since Arthur Pendragon himself, "I will try, but I can't guarantee that I'll remember that my… Harry. However, I will insist that you and your entourage call me Ragnok then"

Harry smiled, then thought a moment, "Ragnok, it says that I have the Black title from my Godfather, who is he?"

"Sirius Black, he supposedly betrayed your parents to You-Know-Who Harry," Minerva said before turning to Ragnok, "If he was Harry's Godfather though, the oath involved would prevent him from harming Harry or his parents. Why wasn't this brought up at his trial?" she asked.

Ragnok grimaced, "That is because, my dear witch, he never received a trial, I mean even Bellatrix got a trial!"

Minerva looked at Severus, they knew that they would have to speak to Madam Bones at a later time. It was at this time that the goblin assistant returned with the rings. "Harry, all you have to do is put the ring on your finger and then magic will confirm your status."

Harry did just that with the rings, first the rings of the Most Ancient and Noble Houses of Potter, Evans, Peverell, and Black, then the Most Ancient and Most Noble Houses of Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin, the the Royal House of Pendragon as the Royal House of Windsor didn't have a Head of House ring and the Queen was the Head of House. Ragnok explained that when a ring was required to be shown, they would separate to display themselves, then Hermione put on the Lady Signet Ring of House Potter, confirming her status to Harry. Then Ragnok turned to the parchment in front of him, "Let's ignore the legal matters in the will and concern ourselves with the placement of Harry, shall we?" upon receiving nods he continued and read straight from the will, " _Should Harry be in need of a guardian, the list goes as follows: Sirius Orion Black (Godfather), Frank and Alice Longbottom (Godmother), Professor Minerva McGonagall (Honourary Grandmother) and finally, should all else fail, the Royal Family of Britain. Under no circumstances is Harry to head to Petunia Dursley, considering her views on Magic._ "

Minerva was in a state of rage, Harry could have lived with her! Severus, seeing that Minerva wasn't fit to talk at the moment pondered; he knew that Minerva would do Harry right, he wasn't concerned about that, but he was concerned about the backlash they would face at the school. Harry on the other hand, was over the moon, he could have a real family, one that Hermione could be a part of and he could be happy to be in. Hermione was in shock, perhaps her professor would be her new family or she would be a part of the Royal Family.

Ragnok brought them back together though, "Professor McGonagall, would you be able to fight for Harry? Taking him as your ward would focus scrutiny on you and I would not want him to be unprotected."

Ragnok learned why the standing procedure at Hogwarts for when Minerva was pissed was to duck and hide in a nanosecond as she fixed him with a hard glare, and made out her demands, "I want to know who and why these wills were sealed, I also want them to pay! I trust Gringotts would do this, for a reasonable fee of course."

Ragnok shuttered, Minerva could be intimidating when she wanted to be, and it was nigh on impossible to intimidate a goblin, "I think ma'am, that we will waive the fees this time. Will you be taking on the guardianship of Harry and Miss Granger then?"

Minerva looked to the two and received enthusiastic nods, "I'd be honoured to."

Ragnok saw the children's reaction and couldn't suppress a chuckle, "Then I'll take my leave, Harry if you need anything regarding your Soul-Bond or any Gringotts' business, do not hesitate to letter me."

With that, they left Gringotts, but Hogwarts would be a challenge.

* * *

Upon leaving the Headmistress' office, they were greeted by Alba and a few other Slytherins, "Harry, I'm glad that you're back, if I may, how did Gringotts go?"

Harry smiled, "A lot of things happened," He commented before turning to Professor McGonagall, "Perhaps a statement could be made so I'm not harassed about it?"

Minerva nodded, then spoke to Alba, "Harry and Hermione are going to be staying with us over the Holidays from now on."

Alba smiled, "So I'm gaining a little brother and probably future sister-in-law? Cool."

Harry smirked and Hermione raised her hand, "Not probably nor future, more like immediate."

The shock was palpable and Harry was worried, but then one of the fifth year Slytherins spoke up, "Five Galleons it's a Soul-Bond." to which Harry nodded and Hermione beamed.

Alba's face hardened, "Harry, Hermione, stay in between people, I'm worried that the people that bullied you on Valentine's Day wouldn't hesitate to send hexs your way."

Everyone understood what he was getting at and circled around Harry and Hermione, then they had to enter the Great Hall. upon their entrance, only a look from Alba stayed the Slytherins, also the knowledge that they would come over in a moment. Once all were seated, Minerva stood, "This morning, Mister Potter and Miss Granger were accompanied by myself and Professor Snape in their trip to Gringotts, wherein, we were read the Potter wills and Mister Potter received his inheritance. We also learned to nature of something that the staff thought might have happened; Mister Potter and Miss Granger are Soulmates, this means that anyone attempting to break them apart will be brought under the purview of the DMLE, minimum sentencing for something like this is life in Azkaban. We of the staff congratulate the new Potters on their good fortunes. In regards to his inheritance, Mister Potter's official title is 'Lord Harry James Potter-Evans-Peverell-Black-Gryffindor-Ravenclaw-Slytherin-Pendragon-Windsor; High King of Magical Britain, High King of Scotland, Duke of the Highlands, Duke of Hogwarts' as he feels that would be a pain for us professors to say everytime we were to call upon him, he wishes to remain Mister Potter. Should you make an enemy of him, or send official correspondence with him, you would use this title."

The hall was rather silent, everyone heard the 'Gryffindor-Ravenclaw-Slytherin' part of his title, giving him control of Hogwarts. Many Gryffindors couldn't reconcile the fact that a Slytherin was Lord Gryffindor, and some made their opinion known immediately, "How can a filthy Snake be Lord of the Lions!" Ron yelled and soon the entire hall erupted, the Slytherins defending their charge, whilst the Gryffindors causing all sorts of chaos. Soon though, the professors regained control, Minerva tearing the strips of her lions, "I will not have Gryffindor besmirch Mister Potter's name, especially considering that I have adopted him and Miss Granger, speaking of which, Hermione, how would you like to be referred as?"

Hermione looked Minerva in the eyes, "Honestly ma'am, I am torn between taking on the McGonagall name for the next six or more years, or taking on the Potter name already, I'll answer to both though."

Minerva was shocked, "Should you choose the McGonagall name, I will do my best to live up to the expectations as your mother."

Hermione then turned to Harry, who just smiled, "Am I going to be marrying a Granger or a McGonagall?"

Hermione thought for a moment then smiled and replied, "A McGonagall."

This silenced the hall, after all, the first rule that everyone learns is to not piss off Minerva and Hermione becoming a McGonagall and Minerva stating that she would live up to the expectations as her mother meant that everyone was going to be steering clear of Hermione, well everyone with sense at least...

* * *

 _ **Chapter Five down! oi, this took a lot out of me to get it ready before the end of Wednesday, we'll see if this continues onwards.**_

 _ **In regards to reviews:**_ ** _Rajiv A. Rajaram and Harry66; with the whole Troll happening later, I honestly forgot until it was well after publishing Chapter three and so I guess that I'll claim that Ron didn't say anything to Hermione during Halloween as he was still under scrutiny for the incident in Potions at the start of the year. The two people that reviewed under the name Guest on April 25 and PW, trust me, the relationship will slow down, there will be no teenage pregnancy in the story. Cheryl; thanks, I figured that as Hedwig is the only snowy owl at Hogwarts, everyone knows she is Harry's, so everyone wants to see whom he is sending things to. Everyone who gave well-wishes; thank you._**

 ** _10600 views, 55 reviews, 293 follows and 172 favourites; in every respect, excluding the sheer number of chapters, this is the best any of my stories have done. Thank you!_**

 ** _There is a poll on my profile for Harry's Animage/Patronus form, it will be open for the month of May and close on June 3rd._**


	6. Chapter 6

The next few weeks passed rather quietly, and, apart from the usual barbs from the Gryffindors, no one else gave Harry or Hermione any grief. However, the Slytherins did not relax their vigil, neither Harry nor Hermione went anywhere without at least two post-OWLs students with them. Nothing seemed to be happening, until the end of May, "Guys! I think we have a slight problem," Alba said whilst running into the common room, "I just overheard Professor Quirrell arguing with thin air, it sounded like he was losing too!"

Hermione looked up, "Did Professor Quirrell say who he was talking to?"

Alba shook his head, "Just called the person 'My Lord'"

Harry shuttered, catching the attention of everyone, "Harry?" Hermione asked.

"There's only one person that I can think of that would possess someone, and be called 'My Lord'," he whispered, "The same person who would murder a baby."

Realization dawned on everyone, "But I thought he was dead?" was muttered by most, and Professor Snape walked into the common room at that time, "What's going here?" he asked.

Alba told Snape what he had heard and what they supposed and his face thinned, "Unfortunately, Dumbledore never told us what we were protecting, not even the new Headmistress, just that it was some stone…"

Hermione squeaked and Harry slapped his forehead, "The Sorcerer's Stone!" they cried.

Snape was confused, "How can you be sure?"

Harry looked his Professor in the eyes, "Voldemort is obsessed with power and being the strongest wizard, the Sorcerer's Stone can turn any metal to Gold and produces the Elixir of Life, something that can essentially make someone immortal."

Snape's eyes widened, ' _What the blazes was Albus thinking! Hiding the stone in a bloody school!'_ looking at the children, he nodded, "Go about your day, I'll bring this to the Headmistress and we'll deal with it, do not provoke Quirrell, if at all possible, don't even interact with him. If he is possessed by the Dark Lord, then everyone is in danger."

* * *

Unfortunately, Harry and Hermione had Defense Against the Dark Arts that day and Quirrell seemed agitated, worst of all, the Gryffindors seemed hell-bent on provoking them. They were working with the Knockback Jinx that day and, instead of working with partners like normal, many Gryffindors were targeting Harry, Hermione and Neville, though Neville was defending himself because, as Malfoy said "He dared to defend traitors!" this caused the trio to work on their shield charm for the entire class. Quirrell, of course, did not rein in the lions and instead encouraged them. He then told them to stay after class, "I'm disappointed in you Mister Potter, I thought that you were supposed to be my best student," he said before raising his wand, forgetting about Hermione and Neville, "Now, you will come with me to bring my master back to life and then we will finish the job that was started ten years ago." he snarled.

"Quirrel you idiot!" thundered from the back of his head, "You forgot about the Mudblood and the Blood Traitor!"

His eyes widened as Hermione and Neville drew their wands along with Harry, "You can't be serious! _Petrificus Totalus_!"

All of them dodged the spell easily and began casting stunners and knockbacks whilst making their way to the door, thankfully unlocked, but Quirrell was casting spells fast, ' _Hermione! I'll keep him distracted! You take Neville and find a Professor!_ ' Harry sent over their mind link.

Hermione was distraught at the thought of leaving Harry alone, ' _No! I'll send Neville, but stay with you!_ ' she thought back before getting Neville caught up with the plan.

Thankfully they didn't need to send anyone as Professor McGonagall rushed in sending at least a dozen spells towards Quirrell in a half a second. This left him open to Hermione who cast several stunners at him before hitting him, allowing Minerva to cast _Petrificus Totalus_ on him. Once that had been done, Hermione flung herself at Harry. Harry recognised the look in her eyes and instinctively braced.

 _ **SLAP**_

"Harry James Potter! Don't you ever think that you just ever convince me to leave you to die!" She shouted.

Harry rubbed his cheek, "Sorry," he muttered before looking down, "It was the only thing I could think of at the time."

Hermione lifted his chin, Harry saw the streams of tears running down her face, "Silly boy, that's why we talk it through, so we come up with a real plan," she whispered before drawing him into a hug that they both desperately needed, "You scared me badly when you wanted me to run without you, I'll never do that."

Minerva walked over to the couple, "Don't worry about classes for this week, this has been quite the ordeal for all of us," Alba and Severus walked in and Minerva turned to them, "Escort them back to their dorms, I'll take Neville and speak with the Gryffindors." she muttered.

* * *

They did just that. The next morning, everyone was in the Great Hall, waiting for McGonagall to speak, she did not disappoint when she did, "It has come to my attention that many students, often being coerced by others, chose to ignore the warnings given in the middle of February. Needless to say, I am very disappointed in you," She paused to collect herself and let it sink in, "Therefore, the instigators will be expelled from Hogwarts."

A collective gasp came from the students, if ever there was a single act that showed that the staff had moved on from Dumbledore's policy of blanket forgiveness, this was it and McGonagall continued, "Mister Draco Malfoy, Mister Ronald Weasley and Mister Percival Weasley, you are thusly expelled from the school of Hogwarts and forbidden from stepping foot on the grounds unless under the direct supervision of either the Headmistress of Depute Headmaster. Do not try our patience, it took a great deal of convincing from the staff to allow you even that small allowance," many thought that would be it, but McGonagall was just getting into stride, "If there is any mention of bullying another student within the walls of Hogwarts, the culprits will face the same punishments. Do not test us."

The three expelled students stood in shock and Malfoy was the first to recover with his standard quip; "When my father hears about this!"

McGonagall stopped him there, "I could care less about what your father thinks Mr Malfoy, we only need the Duke of Hogwarts' approval to expel students and we have it. If Malfoy Senior wishes to fight Lord Harry James Potter-Pendragon-Windsor, he will have to fight through me first."

Then Professor Flitwick stood, "And me,"

Soon all of the staff and Slytherins were on their feet, throwing their support behind Harry. Then, to everyone's surprise, many of the older Gryffindors stood. Harry was overwhelmed by the support behind him, Hermione squeezed his hand to keep him from falling apart. No one apart from the staff, Hermione, and Alba knew about Harry's past and he wanted to keep it that way.

* * *

Unfortunately, this was not to be. The day came where they would board the Express to London to go home, Alba explaining that they would take the train before apperating with his grandmum back to Hogwarts for the summer, "Tradition" he replied when Hermione asked why he did that.

The ride itself was peaceful, the Slytherins practically commandeered a coach leaving them undisturbed. However, once they reached King's Cross, everything changed.

As soon as Harry and Hermione exited their carriage, they were immediately accosted by none other than Albus Dumbledore, "Harry, my boy, I'm here to make sure that you get home safely, I'll take you to Privet Drive now."

Alba cut across Dumbledore, "There is no way in hell Harry will be going there, he is coming with me and grandmum for the holidays, Miss Granger as well," then he glared at Dumbledore with open contempt, "You may be the leader of both the Wizengamot and the ICW, but you cannot interfere with the life of a young boy."

Dumbledore tried his level best to placate Alba, "Mr McGonagall, the law…"

"The Law in this case is quite clear Dumbledore, Lord Potter shall go nowhere near that house or those people," Madam Bones said as she walked over to the group before turning to Harry, "I was picking up Susan so I decided to ensure that no one gave you any trouble My Lord, it seemed prudent considering the troubles people had been giving you at Hogwarts during the year."

Harry smiled at Madam Bones, "Thank you ma'am, and please, call me Harry or if you really have to, Mr Potter, I only make people whom are my enemies use all of my honourifics."

"POTTER!" came a shout from the other side of the platform.

Harry sighed, "Here we go again."

A tall blond man came up to the group, "You dare expel my son! I am Lord Malfoy…"

Harry cut across him, "And I am Lord Harry James Potter-Evans-Peverell-Black-Gryffindor-Ravenclaw-Slytherin-Pendragon-Windsor; High King of Magical Britain, High King of Scotland, Duke of the Highlands, Duke of Hogwarts, and you will address me as such. Considering your spawn attacked me and my Bonded consistently throughout the year, I have every right to demand your head, I however, do not believe in such archaic methods of revenge, and trust me, I can draw it out for a very long time Mr Malfoy."

Dumbledore decided that this was the perfect time to make himself relevant, "Forgiveness is far better an option Harry."

Harry glared at Dumbledore, "You are not allowed to call me by my given name and, seeing as though you placed me there, I hold you in the same bracket as Mr Malfoy here and will demand that you use my Honourifics. Forgiveness is allowing Death Eaters, the same people who murder, rape, and torture for laughs, the Dark Mark is a perversion of a Soul-Bond, Dumbledore, unable to be taken if unwilling, as a Soul-Bound man myself, I know for certain that they would consider the Dursleys to be honourary members, even if they are Muggles. After all, no one could harm the 'Boy-Who-Lived' but they did."

Professor McGonagall appeared and took the scene in at a glance, with Harry staring down the most powerful wizard in the world and her grandson staring down the senior Malfoy, she figured it was only a matter of time before the situation exploded, "Harry, Hermione, Alba, are you ready to go or should I wait a few moments before taking you with me?"

Harry sighed in relief, "I'm ready to go now ma'am."

Professor McGonagall nodded and took them by the arms and Apperated back to Hogwarts, leaving Madam Bones with Mr Malfoy and Dumbledore. So beginning their summer.

* * *

 _ **Sorry that this chapter is so short, I just wanted to get them to summer so I could have some chapters on it.**_

 _ **Reviews: ctc2000; many of the people I know say that I have 'Shakespeare's Syndrome', that chapter being a good example why, but creatively, I felt as if it was all going Harry's way, so I needed some form of a setback.**_ ** _Cheryl; hopefully this was to your liking._**

 _ **There is a poll on my profile for Harry's Animage/Patronus form, it will be open for the month of May and close on June 3rd, so far the results are**_ ** _Phoenix with 12 votes, Snowy Owl and Tabby Cat are tied with 3, Something else and some form of Snake with 2 and Stag with 0._**


	7. AN

Hey guys, this will mostly be an update rather than an actual chapter, but it is important.

Until further notice, this story will be placed on a temporary (I hope) hiatus. this is due to a number of reasons but the most important one is that my muse has moved to another story of mine that should come out eventually, hopefully, within the next few days to maybe few weeks depending on a few things. That said, my poll regarding Harry's Animage/Patronus form will still be open and transfer over to this new story, I'm putting an extension on it as I am going to be quite busy with my younger brother's graduation as well as my own finals to do. the Poll will remain open until July 1st and then it will close. the Poll is currently Phoenix with 18 votes, Snowy Owl with 5 votes, Something else (PM a suggestion) and Tabby Cat with 4 votes, Some form of Snake with 3 votes and Stag with 1 vote.

I'm also looking for a Beta for my next story, please PM me if you are interested.

Until the next time that my muse takes up this story...


	8. AN 2

Hey guys, I know it's been a while since the last update to this story, but I've come to a decision regarding it. I'll be splitting it into parts, with one part equal to one year. So, this one is done, after I get through the first year of _Harry Potter-McGonagall and the Wands that Destinies are made of_ , I'll return to do the second year, and continue to alternate between this and that story.

With that said; my method of writing does allow me to get distracted easily with stray plot bunnies popping up at random and having to be evaluated. At this point, I believe I've got a dozen or so to go through and evaluate. So my current projects include, but are not limited to _Harry Potter and the True Power He Knows Not_ Series, _Harry Potter-McGonagall_ _and the Wands that Destinies are made of_ , a rewrite of a story for Thomas the Tank Engine (Yes, I know), and a story for Girls Und Panzer. I work on each a little at a time, with my muse dictating which gets the most work per month, which is currently dictating the Girls Und Panzer story. With School resuming in a little over a month, updates for all stories will become more sporadic.

With all of that out of the way, I have a Discord channel that I have created, I intend to use it so that anyone who reads any of my stories can get together and swap tips, help other FanFic writers (Including me), and swap stories that you feel are interesting. Go to the Discord website or use the Discord program and use the invite code BSdFMH3 to join.


End file.
